Over 50,000 Sign Petition Within 24 Hours Asking for an Open Hearing for Chelsea Manning Next Tuesday, the 18th

New Photos and Documents: Chelsea Manning Releases Official Prison Charging Documents, Photo of Herself on Twitter

Over 50,000 Sign Petition Within 24 Hours Asking for an Open Hearing for Chelsea Manning Next Tuesday, the 18th

Chelsea Manning is facing indefinite solitary confinement in prison after being found with a tube of expired toothpaste–included in the medicine misuse charge–and Caitlyn Jenner’s Vanity Fair profile piece–included under the prohibited property charge. Now, Chelsea Manning has released charging documents she received from the U.S. Army on her Twitter account, handle @xychelsea. She has also released a photo of herself from February 2015, taken during the week she began hormone therapy.

Manning will have a hearing before the Discipline and Adjustment Board set for August 18th at 1:30pm CT, though her request to open the hearing to the public was denied on August 10th. The rules provide that she is not entitled to counsel of her own choosing and her fate will be determined by a three-person board.

Digital rights group Fight for the Future launched the original petition yesterday, August 12, at: https://www.freechelsea.com/. Within the last 24 hours, Roots Action and Demand Progress also launched petitions. In total, over 50,000 people have added their name to demand the charges against Chelsea Manning be dropped and to request that the upcoming hearing be made open to the public.

Said Chase Strangio, one of Chelsea Manning’s attorneys in her civil case against the U.S. Department of Defense seeking access to health care related to gender transition:

“This kind of action has the potential to chill Chelsea’s speech and silence her altogether. We are hopeful that the prison will respond by dismissing these charges and ensuring that she is not unfairly targeted based on her activism, her identity, or her pending lawsuit.”

Said Nancy Hollander, lead counsel for Chelsea Manning’s criminal appeal:

“I am concerned that the prison authorities are going to continue harassing Chelsea whenever she speaks out or demands her rights. Asking for a lawyer is not disrespect.”